Method of making sheet-material parts



.lume 2, 1942. cs.v 'rRATvETTER 2,284,697' I ETHAODvOF MAKINGSHEET-'MATERIAL PARTSv v Fileduan.` 2v, '195s 'V ATTORNEY.

Patented' .time 2,1942 l i George Trautvetter, Philadelphia, Pa.,assignor `to Edward G. Budd Manufactmingl Company,

Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsyl-Al vania applicati@ January2i, iets, serial No. 1eme? i (ci. 11e- 116) K 4 4 Claims. This inventionrelates toa method of making side wall, eut of sheet material.

The aim of automobile body engineers has been for some time directed -tothe reduction of i Wastage of pressed metal in themethcds employed inthe fabrication of bodies. A body of sheet steel stampings ispeculiarlyadapted for parts of a wall, such as of an automobilebody` theattainment of this end, and it is the general In stamping the body'sidepanel, the sheet metal Vwhich comprises the area comprehended by theiront and rear door openings kis also stamped out, leaving the marginaledges t2, i 3, t4, i5, It, Iland Iii. In other words, the sheet metalthus removed as a single Asheet would be Wasted but for the factthat'the method employed in stamping out this metal anticipated theguseof this waste or removed Ymetal as a blank for a rear object or thepresent invention to provide a condoor, to be used over the door openingIl. The struction of body made Vof sheet steel stampings Waste orremoved metal constitutes a rudiwhereby this aim is fulnlled in a veryhigh dementa-ry blank, from which'thefdoor panel 2! gree. Vcan belstamped by employing substantially any In particular, the invention isdirected to a of themethods well knownin the art. e e rear door foranautomobile body oi the mono- The gist of this invention resides in thefact piece typeywhich door is to be fabrieatedout of that therudimentary blank COnSSting Oi C1001?A pressed metal. The inventionrelatesv to a rneth- Opening areas I il and ll is sufiicient to supply4od of blanking a plurality of members from a enough metalifrom which arear door panel can single blank of sheet material, and more particv bestamped. However, it is important to observe ularly to a method ofmanufacturing or procurthat the attainment of such a blank is possibleing-afblank for a rear door, from the material Only beeallSe the B1-*0DOSt 3i1lS net Stamped removed from said single blank of sheet materialat the same` time that the.V body` side panel is in the operation oi`forming the front and rear 1 Stamped- In Stamping the body side panel,the door openings of said mono-piece body stampmarginal edge DOTtlOnS l3and lll, ll and I3 are ing, v 25 provided with( post attaching portionsor projec- Heretofore, in the manufacture of body panel tiene 3|and 32,said p1^OjeGt0nS being n Vertistampings, it has been the practice to.blank such Cal and planar alignment. After the door openfront and reardoor openings; as separate and inings have been fOrIned and therudimentary dOOl" dividualv openings, divided by a `door post, frompanel blank Obtained, the I3-C 100St 39, made a single piece of sheetmaterial, with the result aCCOIdngtO a Separate methOd, Can be Securedthatsuch blanked out portions were necessarily to the projections 3| and32 by riveting, welddiscarded as waste material. NaturallysuchV ing 0I*the like. Y waste adds to the cost ofmaking the body.v .Itis to be notedthat the rudimentary blank is Now, I propose to combine the steps ofmanup SnlllClenttO Supply all metal needed in the fOrfacturing the bodyside panel and the rudimenmation of the -door panel, the outerperipheral tary blank for the rear door together, whereby limits OfWhich are ShOWn by the line 25- After the wasted portion of said bodyside panel can the dOOlpanel haS been formed from the rudibesubsequently formed into a rear door panel. mentary blank, it is obviousthat the remaining This results in a reduction in the cost ofmanumetalis wasted .but this wasted metal by no iacturing the parts referred to.means can compare, in amount, to the metal Other objects and features ofthis invention which was formerly wasted in 'following the willmorefully appear from the, following destamping methods of the prior art. Itis, relatailed description, takenfin connection with the tivelyspeaking, only a small proportion of that accompanying drawing, whichillustrates a sin# 1p l metal which was formerly wasted and hence theele ernbOdiInent 0f` the invention, in which is 45 costs of making abody side panel and a rear shown a side elevation Vof the vehicle body.door panel have been materially reduced. The body Side panel AV taken aSa Whole may In the annexed claims, I desire to claim all he`Substantially Of knOWn Construction and is modifications of vmyinvention which fall Within made by stampingvfrom a `single sheet ofmatethe purview of its generic spirit. rial, usually sheet metal. Thestamping thus 1 claim; f comprises a portion of a front or 'cowl unit B,the 1. In' the method of making a vehicle body Side Unit C and a tonneauunitV D. all hOWeVeI' side wall panel including front and rear doorlbeing integral. t openings and a panel for a door of the same ve- Thefront door opening is represented as It hicle, the step of removing froma 'single blank and the rear door opening is represented as l I.

of sheet material an integral portion sufficient to provide for thefront and rear door openings, of forming said blank into a body sidewall stamping, of forming said removed portion into a door panel, offorming separately a door post member and connecting such member withsaid side wall stamping as to separate the front and rear door openingsfrom each other.

2. In the method of making a Vehicle body side wall panel includingfront and rear door openings and a panel for a door of the same vehicle,one ofv said openings being provided with a Wheel housing portion, thestep of removing from a single blank of sheet material an integralportion suiicient to provide for the front and rear door openings, offorming said blank into a body side wall stamping, of forming saidremoved portion into a panel for the door to be fitted into the openingcomprising the wheel housing section, of forming separately a door postmember and connecting such member with said side wall stamping as toseparate the front and rear door openings from each other.

Vfree from interruptions and distortions incompatible with itssubsequent use for the formation of another part, requiring a blankWhose outline is greater than either the front or rear door turing adoor post member common to said front and rear door openings and unitingit with said projections of the side wall panel.

4. In the method of making a wall for an automobile body side wallincluding more than one opening at least one to be lled in by aremovable closure member such as a door, the operation of forming fromone integral blank of sheet material a wall member integrallysurrounding one great opening, said great opening covering substantiallythe area of said rst named openings of the finished wall, said operationcomprising cutting out a part of said blank which part extends into thearea of at least two of said rstnamed openings so as to obtain acomparatively large cut out blank whose area is greater than the area ofone of said openings adapted to be used for the formation of anothermember and practically free from interruptions and distortionsincompatible with such use, and of forming separately a second wallmember for and connecting it with said first named wall member betweeneach two adjacent rst-named openings.

GEORGE TRAUTVETTER.

